Comparative study of periodicity estimation methods using ultrasonic signals

Abstract Introduction Various signal-processing techniques have been proposed to extract quantitative information about internal structures of tissues from the original radio frequency (RF) signals instead of an ultrasound image. The quantifiable parameter called the mean scatterer spacing (MSS) can be useful to detect changes in the quasi-periodic microstructure of tissues such as the liver or the spleen, using ultrasonic signals. Methods We evaluate and compare the performance of three classic methods of spectral estimation to calculate the MSS without operator intervention: Tufts-Kumaresa...